(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
(1) “Educational conference” means a conference, forum, camp, or other similar event, intended to develop the leadership, career, or college readiness of a student or provide some other form of educational benefit, when participation in the event is represented as being limited to students receiving an award, invitation, or nomination to participate in the event.
(2) “Educational conference organization” or “organization” means a person, partnership, corporation, or other entity that operates in a for-profit manner and that plans and advertises educational conferences to students residing in the State of California.
(3) “Student” means a person who is enrolled in elementary or secondary school, grade kindergarten through grade 12, at the time an educational conference is arranged with an educational conference organization.
(b) An educational conference organization that provides materials related to an educational conference directly to a school or any employee thereof for purposes of distribution to a student shall comply with all of the following:
(1) The organization shall provide the materials in a sealed envelope or other packaging addressed to the parent or legal guardian of the student.
(2) The organization shall include with the materials all of the following disclosures, in clear and conspicuous language:
(A) That the materials constitute a solicitation for the sale of a product.
(B) The legal form of the organization making the solicitation, including the for-profit status of the organization.
(C) The legal owner, if any, of the organization making the solicitation.
(D) The specific eligibility criteria required for participation in the solicited educational conference or conferences, if any.
(E) An itemized list of the costs to participate in the educational conference and the total price of participating in the educational conference, including estimated expenses not included in the price of the educational conference.
(F) That attendance at an educational conference may not affect a student’s chances of being admitted to college and that a parent or guardian should contact the student’s school counselor for more information.
(G) Whether or not a nomination from a teacher or school administrator is required to participate in the educational conference, or if an individual may be self-nominated or nominated by a parent or guardian.
(H) The total amount, if any, of funding or other support, including employment or grants for school supplies, the organization has provided to the student’s school or the school’s employees during the last three years before the date of the solicitation.
(I) A phone number, email address, or Internet Web site that a parent or guardian may use to contact a government agency within the relevant jurisdiction for purposes of filing a complaint related to the solicitation or the educational conference itself.
(3) The organization shall provide the disclosures described in paragraph (2) on separate documents addressed to the school and to any employee thereof who is asked to distribute materials to a student.
(Added by Stats. 2016, Ch. 185, Sec. 2. (AB 2609) Effective January 1, 2017.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018